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"We are an impact investor, but we are looking to achieve a 'commercial return' at an acceptable risk, while ensuring a strong developmental impact."
So says Verdant Capital in an interview with the African Media Agency about its investment in Watu Uganda, a company that provides loans to young people in the country who want to earn a living by driving a motorcycle taxi.
The investment is part of Verdant's larger strategy of investing in "underserved opportunities and making money for the end-clients, our investees, and our investors," the company's CEO tells the New York Times.
"We partner with our investee companies, who in many ways are doing the hardest work, providing loans to and collecting from the end client to improve his or her life."
Watu's loan book now stands at 35,000 clients, the Times notes, and the company's CEO says they've been able to "expand its loan book by 35,000 clients, thereby providing 35,000 young people the opportunity to earn a livelihood by driving a boda boda (motorbike taxi)."
Verdant Capital isn't the first to invest in this area, but it's the first to do so with an emphasis on social and environmental impact.
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Social Entrepreneurship
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In the world of social enterprises, failure is a cringe-worthy moment nobody wants to talk about. But, social entrepreneurs can benefit from their failures.
